Denver Broncos vs Houston Texans 12/8/19 NFL Betting Odds and Prediction

The Denver Broncos travel to Space City to take on the Houston Texans at the NRG Stadium in Week 14 of NFL action.

The Broncos are having a tough season under first-year head coach Vic Fangio but the team is still fighting and they head to Houston after a win over the Los Angeles Chargers last weekend. On the other hand, the Houston Texans are coming off a win over the New England Patriots last week and the AFC South Leaders are looking to solidify their hold of the top spot with a home win over the lowly Broncos.

Spoilers Role

With their season in ruins, the Denver Broncos look to play the spoiler’s role the rest of the way. Last weekend, Denver ended the Los Angeles Chargers’ hopes of entering the postseason. This week, the Broncos look to pull the Texans back and put them in a neck to neck battle with the Tennessee Titans for the divisional title.

Philip Lindsay leads Denver in rushing with a total of 766 yards on 164 carries with five rushing touchdowns. Courtland Sutton has caught 54 passes for a total of 906 yards with six touchdown grabs. Drew Lock will get his first road start after converting 18 of 28 passes for 134 yards with two scores and one pick in his first NFL start.

Denver ranks next to last in the league in passing at only 187.4 yards per game this season. They are 16th in rushing with an average of 108.3 per outing. The Broncos are 4th from last when it comes to scoring as they are putting up just 16.5 points per game while also allowing 19.8 points per game.

Top Spot

The Houston Texans have won four out of their last five games and they are currently occupying the top spot in the AFC South Division and are the third seed in the AFC Conference. Houston is coming off a big 28-22 win over the New England Patriots last weekend.

DeShaun Watson has thrown for a total of 3,133 passing yards with 23 touchdowns and only 7 interceptions. He threw for three scores and caught one during their win over New England. Carlos Hyde leads Houston with 853 rushing yards with four touchdowns while DeAndre Hopkins has caught 86 passes for 903 yards with six scores.

The Texans rank 12th in passing at 243.0 yards per game. They are 7th on the ground with an average of 129.8 rushing yards per game. Houston is 10th in the NFL in scoring at 24.4 points per game and they are giving up an average of 22.6 points per game on the season.

Who Wins?

Denver is 4-12 SU in their last 16 games played and the Broncos are 1-7 SU in their last eight games played on the road. Houston is 4-1 SU in their last five games played and the Texans are 5-1 SU in their last five games played at home. Head to head, the Broncos are 4-3 SU in their last seven games played against the Texans.

Drew Lock won his first-ever NFL start last week when the Broncos edged the Chargers 23-20. He finished with only 134 passing yards but had two first-half touchdowns and a second-half interception. However, Denver wasted a 17-3 lead and won after a controversial call led to a game-winning field goal.

The Texans shut down Tom Brady to just 82 passing yards plus an interception in the first half of their game against the Packers last week. They also allowed the Patriots to score just one field goal in their first seven possessions en route to a 28-22 win over New England last weekend.

Star linebacker Von Miller is still questionable to return for Denver while defensive end Derick Wolfe will miss this game with a dislocated elbow. Aside from the injuries, Drew Lock will be making his first road start against a Houston defense that played Tom Brady well the past week. I like the home team to beat the visitors here.

Prediction: Houston Texans

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Other Bets to Make

The Broncos are 4-1 ATS in their last five games played. Denver is 3-3 ATS in six road games this season, and they are 1-4 ATS in their last five games played in December. The Texans are 2-4 ATS in their last six games played. Houston is 2-4 ATS in six home games this season, 4-2 ATS in their last six games against the AFC West Division, and 2-5 ATS in their last seven Week 14 games. Head to head, the Broncos are 4-3 ATS in their last seven games played against the Texans.

The Texans have not been favorites by more than a touchdown since Week 2 when they defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 13-12 as 7.5 point favorites. Although they have been successful against the spread in their last five games, they have done so mostly as underdogs. Houston is 7-2-1 ATS in their last 10 games as underdogs but they are just 2-6-1 ATS in their last nine games as favorites and just 5-10 ATS in their last 15 as chalk. I like the Texans to win but the Broncos are going to be conservative and keep this a close game.

Prediction: Broncos +9.5

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The total has gone under in 15 out of the last 20 games played by the Broncos. The under is 14-3 in Denver’s last 17 games against the AFC conference, and 7-1 in their last 8 games against the AFC South Division. The total has gone under in four out of the last five games played by Houston. The Texans have seen the under go 4-1 in their last five games against the AFC West Division, and the under is also 12-6 in their last 18 December games. Head to head, the under is 5-1-1 in the last seven meetings between these two teams including 3-0 in their last three games played.

These teams have combined to score an average of 40.67 points per game in their last three meetings. Denver has allowed an average of 20.2 points per game in their last five games played and they have seen the total go under 43 points in five out of their last 8 games played. The Texans have scored an average of 20.25 points per game in their last four games played and they have played under the total of 40 in two of their last four games played. I expect the Broncos to be under control in Drew Lock’s first road start and the Texans may have a letdown here after a good five-game run.

Prediction: Under 42.5

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